


Insomnium

by Kokosmaelk



Category: SKAM (TV)
Genre: Angst, Evak AU, Fluff, M/M, Marijuana, Peter Pan AU, well... loosely based on peter pan
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-04
Updated: 2017-01-16
Packaged: 2018-09-14 15:50:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,237
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9190340
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kokosmaelk/pseuds/Kokosmaelk
Summary: Isak knows he is dreaming as soon as the smell of seawater hits him.The water laps gently at Isak’s ankles where he stands, feet covered in soft, beige sand as he gazes out at the siren playing in the ocean waves.*or the Peter Pan AU no one asked for.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I've been wanting to write this for a month now and I finally got around to do it. \o/ Go me. 
> 
> This is going to veery loosely follow the Peter Pan universe. 
> 
> This is my first time writing fanfiction. Heck, first time writing anything really, so please be kind to me, as english is not my native language and it is probably riddled with grammar mistakes. rip
> 
> If you do see any errors or inconsistencies please let me know.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆

 _Isak knows he is dreaming as soon as the smell of seawater hits him._  
  
_The water laps gently at Isak’s ankles where he stands, feet covered in soft, beige sand as he gazes out at the siren playing in the ocean waves._  
  
_She’s fully aware of Isak’s presence on the beach, has been from the moment he showed up. Giggling and joyful, she turns seductively in his direction and with a slight wave of a hand and a splash of a tail fin, the fair-haired siren beckons him to join her in the water._  
  
_Isak knows better._  
  
_Her smiling face is inviting and her eyes, the colour of the sea, are easy to get lost in, but Isak is not blind to the underlying hunger flashing behind them. As stunning as the siren is, with her flawless skin almost sparkling in the evening sun and her colourful tail appearing and disappearing beneath the ocean surface, lazily splashing water towards him each time it resurfaces, he knows that as soon as he gets too close, her true colours will show. The last thing Isak would see before the ocean would swallow him whole, would be a pair of blue eyes and a mouth agape with a full set of pointy teeth, revealing a dangerous predator - ready to devour her foolish prey._  
  
_Luckily her luring tricks has no effect on Isak. Girls, no matter how beautiful or intriguing, would never stir any feelings in Isak. Being of a different species did not change that fact and Isak counts himself blessed that female sirens and male sirens don’t get along well, and usually stay oceans apart._  
  
_Isak lifts a hand and waves at the siren, a teasing smile playing on his lips. The siren stills for a short moment in the water, before she begins singing, her voice carrying on the gentle ocean breeze. It is a last attempt at luring him into her arms, the desperation for food starting to show on her face and she swirls impatiently in the waves, probably sensing the futility of the situation._

  
_Isak is still smiling at the siren when a sudden tremor in the ground forces Isak’s attention away from her and he stumbles a few steps back as the tremor grows in intensity._  
  
_Isak frowns slightly in confusion before he realises. Oh. He knows what is going to happen. He has dreamt about this place so often, it starts to feel more like a memory than a dream, and he looks out at the siren for the last time, savoring the moment_ _before the dream image shatters into a million pieces. As they do, the pieces scatters around him and like glass shards they float in the nothingness that now surrounds him._  
  
_In the darkness, Isak picks up one of the shards. The sirens reflection looks back at him, mouth moving to words he can no longer hear, before the shard melts away and Isak is left alone in the enclosing darkness._  
  
_Isak hates this part of the dream, because while he is dreaming, he can never remember what happens next, and the silence around him is eerie and it makes the hair at the back of his neck stand on end and when he closes his eyes, he can hear his heart pounding in his chest and the sound of dripping water-_  
  
Wait - dripping water?

_Isak opens his eyes instantly, and though it is still considerably dark around him, it is not the same overwhelming nothingness that had encompassed him just moments ago._

  
_Instead it is the sight of wet, cold cave walls and massive stalactites that greets him, the continuous dripping of water from the spikes echoing in the cave chamber. In the distance Isak can still sense the quiet roaring of water and it is not until he turns around that he realises, the roaring of water is coming from below him._  
  
_Far below him._  
  
_Standing right at the edge, Isak looks down at the looming water below, churning, and glowing a pale green, the water looks both welcoming and forbidding. The pale flickering light located in the middle of the maelstrom is entrancing and Isak is so captivated by the sight alone, he doesn’t notice the presence of other people until a man starts talking._  
  
_Isak spins around, the speed of his movement almost making him fall backwards and down, and wouldn’t that have been a pathetic way to go._  
  
_Isak regains his balance and looks up at the newly arrived._  
  
A pirate, _Isak's mind whispers knowingly._  
  
_Tall and imposing, dressed in a magnificent red coat, he stands merely a few meters from Isak. Next to him is a significantly smaller man twice the girth of the tall stranger. He is holding a torch and with bushy eyebrows almost covering his squinting eyes he looks directly at Isak, his scraggly and grey-streaked beard failing to hide the nearly toothless grin he is sporting._  
  
_The tall stranger is still talking, his voice commanding yet gentle, his right hand outstretched towards Isak, and although Isak cannot understand what he is saying, it is clear he wants him to step away from the ledge. Isak looks at his face, but in his dream the face of the stranger is smudged and distorted, and it is only by the trademark hook on his left hand, that Isak finally recognises him._  
  
Captain Hook.  
  
_He is still talking, louder and louder, his voice echoing in the vast cave chamber, but now it has started to sound more like a tape played backwards and it sends a chill down Isak’s spine._  
  
_Suddenly Hook takes a step closer, which makes Isak instinctively take a step back and now the heel of his right foot is touching nothing but air. This makes Hook stops abruptly and move his hands up in front of his chest, in a seemingly soothing gesture. Apparently, he seems just as keen on Isak taking the plunge down into the maelstrom than Isak himself does._  Interesting.

  
_Does Hook care for Isak’s well-being?_

_Or perhaps it’s only his desperation to get his hand on the device that has suddenly materialised in Isak’s hand, that’s making him act almost humane._

_Isak looks down at the strange device. He has seen it a hundred times before, but he always forgets how beautiful it truly is. Intricate and detailed, the wooden device hums and creaks under his fingers. Neverland, the place where he is now, with dangerous sirens and greedy pirates and beaches that stretches as far as the eye can see and so much more that Isak’s brain can’t possibly imagine, everything and more so is depicted in shape of several small carvings, all moving fluidly between each other in what appears to be no discernible pattern. The importance of this device does not escape Isak._  
  
_\- And suddenly he knows what Hook is after and why he cannot, under any circumstances, get his hands on it._  
  
_Isak’s gaze flitters up and across Hook’s face, still as blurred and unrecognisable as before, though if he concentrates hard enough, Isak can almost remember what he looks like._ Almost.  
  
_Isak’s concentration is suddenly broken by movement behind Hook. Looking past his adversary, Isak feels his heart speed up and his breath catch in his throat. There’s a boy, around his age, held between two broad-shouldered pirates and he is oh so familiar. Tall, handsome and blue-eyed, the boy is staring straight at Isak, his face unreadable, but his eyes conveying a thousand words that makes Isak’s mouth go dry. The way he looks at Isak is overwhelming._  
  
Even.  
  
_Logically Isak knows he doesn’t_ really _know this person, that Even is only a figment of his imagination, just like everyone and everything else here, yet his heart betrays his brain, and every emotion he is experiencing feels_ so real. _Isak feels a deep longing to run to Even and to hold him close. To mutter soothing words into the other boy’s ear;_  
  
“I am here, I am not going anywhere, everything will be okay… I love you”  
  
_\- to kiss his soft hair, his eyelids, his lips. Anything to wipe that heartbroken expression off his face._  
  
_Even is struggling to get free, desperate to get to Isak, but the pirates holding him in a vice grip doesn’t budge an inch and the strength soon leaves the other boy._

 

 _Isak’s heart drops at the sudden realization of the predicament he is in. The predicament they’re both in. He can’t run to Even. He can’t save him and he can’t save himself. But he can save something that’s far more important. He can save this place._  
  
_Isak knows this, that in this dream he is the only one who can save Neverland. Saving this place should be his priority. To make sure that Hook, only a few meters away from Isak, will never get hold of the device Isak is currently clutching to his chest._  
  
_And yet…_  
  
_This is the moment._  
  
_This is where he always tries to change the dream._  
  
_But no matter how much he tries to change the story or hell, even to wake up before_ it _happens, every attempt is futile. The story remains the same._  
  
_Isak feels the resignation settle in his bones as he takes a deep breath and, with a last longing gaze at the person he loves so much that it makes his lungs ache, he takes a step back. He doesn’t break eye-contact until the very last second. Hook storming towards him barely registers. He is too late anyway._  
  
_Clutching the device to his chest, the last thing Isak hears as he is plunging to his death, is Even screaming his name_.    

 

                    ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

Isak bolts upright in his bed, almost slamming his head against the boy leaning over him.  
  
“Wow hey, easy there Isak”

 Isak blinks several times up at the face above him and it takes him several seconds before he recognises the person with the curly hair and bushy eyebrows as his best friend Jonas. Said friend who is currently looking at him with a concerned expression, his mouth turned downward and a slight wrinkle between his brows. Isak has seen that expression a lot recently and it makes Isak’s stomach twist guiltily.  
  
“Same dream again?” Jonas asks while he tugs at Isak’s arm, helping him the rest of the way out of bed. If he noticed the guilty expression on Isak’s face, he doesn’t comment on it. Instead he crosses his arms and looks at Isak curiously. Patiently.  
  
Isak runs a slightly shaking hand through his hair, still not fully awake. “Yeah, 3rd time this week” The face of the blue-eyed boy still clear in Isak’s mind which makes him want nothing more than to go back to bed, just so he can dream about Even. But the only time Isak sees Even is when he dreams of Neverland and those dreams never ends pleasantly.  
  
Jonas looks at him for a second, his gaze piercing, before he unfolds his arms and moves away from Isak.

“The House Matron will be here any second so you better get dressed.” Jonas shrugs a shoulder as he sits down on his own bed, already neatly made.  
  
Isak smiles wanly at Jonas, grateful that he friends know not to press for more details. He knows how much dreaming about Neverland stresses Isak.  
  
The dreams have been a part of Isak as long as he can remember, though that shouldn't say much, since Isak can’t remember anything past this year.  
  
                                                                                                                                                     

⋆ ⋆ ⋆

He’d arrived here, at the Home of the Lost Boys, almost exactly one year ago, with nothing but the clothes on his body and a little wooden device in his hands. The only thing he could remember was his name and his birthday.  
  
“…Isak, 17 years old, suffering from memory loss. No way to get a hold of family until he gets his memories back, _if_ he gets them back. Best to let him stay here awhile. “  
  
The doctor had left the house shortly after and that was that. The House Matron, a burly looking woman with kind eyes, had grasped his shoulder in a strong grip. “You will be safe here little one”  
  
She had led Isak to a room with two other boys around his age, and announced him their third roommate and to “please treat him kindly, poor thing doesn’t know up from down.  Dinner’s ready in 15”.     
  
Jonas, one of the boys he was rooming with, had been the first person to befriend him. They’d been sharing a joint in a corner of the backyard the next day, away from prying eyes. The other boy had been convinced that the little wooden device Isak had with him was the key to solving his amnesia, and had been adamant about solving the riddle.  
  
Isak hadn’t been sure that there were any riddles to solve.  
  
The device was still and ordinary looking, nothing like the one in his dreams, where the carvings had moved and the device had hummed with life.  
  
  
  
In the end, Jonas had huffed, annoyed, and thrown the wooden gadget back at Isak, giving up after having spent three weeks trying to solve its secrets.  
  
“Maybe some things aren’t meant to be remembered. You might be better off without them”

Isak hadn’t been so sure he agreed, but as he took another drag of the usual joint, handing it back to Jonas, he decided that he quite liked it here, next to Jonas and whether he got his memories back or not, nothing felt as important as this.     
  
Or maybe that was just the high from the weed talking.

  
                                                                                                                                               

⋆ ⋆ ⋆

 

Isak is fully dressed and his bed is somewhat neat when The Matron shows up. She shares a fond look with both boys as she informs them of their duties for the day. Satisfied with the tidiness of the room, she gives them a kind smile before leaving the room. 

  
They are both going to work outside all day, which usually isn’t so bad, except it’s January and the ground is covered in a thick layer of snow and Isak really, really hates shovelling snow. Jonas doesn’t seem too enthusiastic about it either judging by the way he throws himself back onto his bed with a groan, rumpling his neatly made duvet. “You’re cursed Isak. I always get the shittiest tasks when I am paired with you”

 

Isak huffs a laugh as he moves towards his desk, but doesn’t say anything to rebut that claim. His mind is again lost in thoughts about Neverland and as he opens the desk drawer and takes out the wooden device, all he can think about is Even and the hymn of the fair-haired siren.

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for the kudos and sweet comments ♥ It motivates me to keep on writing. 
> 
>  
> 
> Betaed by [isaksyakis](http://archiveofourown.org/users/isaksyakis) ♥

 

⋆ ⋆ ⋆

 

It’s high noon by the time Isak and Jonas finish shovelling snow.  
Isak’s shoulders ache terribly after hours of strenuous work and when he sits down next to Jonas on the ground, his back creaks loudly, making Jonas shoot him a mock sympathetic look.  
“Alright there, ancient one?” His look of sympathy soon turns mischievous, as he removes his gloves and starts patting his pockets and after a few seconds of searching, procures a joint.  
“Guess I’ll have to smoke this one myself, then.”  
Ignoring Jonas’ comment, Isak mirrors the smirk on the other boy’s face and as he too removes his gloves, instantly feeling the sting of the biting cold on his fingertips, he makes grabby hands for the joint. Jonas easily gives it over and waits patiently for Isak to light it and take a drag. Isak exhales the smoke slowly and hands the joint back to his best friend.  
“I’ve always wondered, how do you even get your hands on this stuff?”  
Jonas looks guilty for a moment before he shrugs his shoulders and takes a drag, his fingers slowly turning blue around the joint. “I just-“  
Isak interrupts him as realisation hits.

“Don’t tell me you make the kids get it for you!”  
Jonas silence after that is answer enough.  
“Dude that’s just so wrong.” Shaking his head, Isak takes back the joint but before he can take another drag, a sudden forceful blow to his hand makes him drop it to the ground, and the joint quickly goes soggy from the wet January snow. Jonas curses and picks it up, but it’s too late.

“Do you guys really think it’s smart smoking that out here in broad daylight?”  
Isak looks away from the ruined weed and towards the new voice he already recognises as belonging to one Mahdi Disi, brown eyes laughing mirthfully behind a very put upon stern expression. Next to him Magnus is beaming, obviously the culprit behind the snowball that made Isak drop the joint, his blond hair flopping into his eyes as he lifts a snow-covered hand to salute the two boys on the ground. When all he gets in return are two matching glares he puts both hands up defensively.  
“Hey fellas, I was totally looking out for you, I swear!” Still met with unrelenting stares, he adds in a slightly squeakier voice, “What if the Matron saw you!”  
The mention of the Matron makes Isak blink and he drags his eyes away from Magnus and shares a look with Jonas, the smirk he is now sporting cutting a dimple in his right cheek.  
“She joined us once actually-” Isak starts tentatively.

 

“- nearly smoking the entire joint by herself-“ Jonas adds, twirling their current joint between his thumb and index finger, still mourning the loss.  
Isak nods affirmatively, grinning. “She even complimented us on the quality of the weed-“

“-and then she confiscated my entire stash.” Jonas finishes, and again they share a look before they both resolve into boyish giggles at the absurd memory.  
“Yeah right!” Mahdi barks a laugh in disbelief, arms crossed as he shivers in the cold breeze, watching the two boys on the ground as if they’ve grown several heads. Magnus next to him wears the same look of disbelief, though it quickly dissolves into a goofy grin.  
“Oh man, I could totally see her do that!” he stretches both arms out to the boys, offering to help them up from the cold ground. “Anyway, we came out to get you. Lunch is ready.”  
As Magnus assists Jonas and Isak in standing up, both boys having recovered from their giggling fit, he shoots a look at Mahdi’s back, the other boy having started walking back towards the house at the mention of food.

“Best be warned though,” Magnus stage-whispers to the other boys.

“Mahdi cooked.”  
  


⋆ ⋆ ⋆  
  
  


They are all gathered around the dinner table by the time the Matron walks in, snow hanging in half melted clumps from her dark hair and brown fur coat. She smiles at the group of boys, all waiting patiently for her to join them before they can begin eating, as is their custom. Isak’s stomach grumbles loudly as he watches her slowly hang up her coat and some of the younger boys giggle at him, ducking their heads when Isak looks their way. He sends them a fake irritated look as he grabs a pea from one of the bowls on the table and throws it at the smaller boys.  
As one of them leans back to avoid the piece of food, the other boy stretches his neck and catches the pea with his mouth, a proud smile soon plastered on his face. There is a moment’s quiet before a ruckus breaks out around the table, everyone now throwing peas in each other’s direction. Magnus gets a pea in the eye when he tries to catch it with his mouth and quickly forfeits from the game, opting to seek safety under the table. Isak uses his plate as a shield to cover his face, as most of the peas seems to fly in his direction, courtesy of Jonas and Mahdi.

“Now children, remember how hard you worked for those peas.” The Matron interrupts the food fight, as she places herself at the end of the table, her voice gentle but resolute.  
Isak puts down his plate as the other boys, muttering various versions of “Yes ma’am”, stop throwing food at each other and instead start putting food on their own plates.  
As soon as they have all gotten food on their plates, the chatter resumes. Mahdi and Jonas are talking quietly with each other while Magnus, having emerged from his spot under the table, is showing a small boy next to him how to properly use a fork and knife, though he himself seems to be struggling with the tools. Isak secretly observes them all. They are a small group of ten boys, Isak and his three friends being the oldest of them all and therefore easily hero-worshipped by the youngest among them. The Matron, being aware of that fact, always treats the four boys more strictly than she would the younger ones, making sure they act exemplarily when the smallest is in their company.  
Ironic that, since it is always the youngest she sends to town when her purse seems too light.

“Time for my small thieves to turn a trick for the nice gentlemen tomorrow,” she would say fondly, and pull the four youngest boys aside after dinner.

Crowded together, in hushed whispers, they boys would scheme and plot together with the Matron. Isak had tried to listen in on their conversation on one occasions, trying to get an idea of how the kids got their hands on the rich gentlemen’s money, but The Matron had shooed him away with a dismissive hand and a “honey, the less you know the better” remark.  
Disappointed, Isak had skulked in front of the dining room’s hearth, chucking broken twigs into the fire, feeling entirely inadequate. He’d only been at the home for a month back then and had yet to feel like he belonged among the other boys. Mahdi, having witnessed the exchange from the sidelines, had joined Isak in front of the hearth and with a small smile started talking about Magnus and his adventures in the town. How they, at only ten years old, had conned both money and jewellery from the rich noblemen and ladies of the higher end of town.

How when they were twelve, they brought along Jonas, and as he would play on his guitar and Magnus would perform sleight of hand magic tricks for the entranced crowd, Mahdi would walk behind the unaware audience, sneaking the gold right out of their pockets. It had worked for a while, until one day Mahdi got caught with his hand in a big burly man’s pocket. The man had made a big commotion and the three boys were forced to flee back to the safety of home, before the law enforcement got their hands on them. They have been banned from going to the town ever since.  
While Isak understood the intention behind Mahdi’s story, to cheer him up, but also to warn him of the town, this had only made Isak want to see the town and its people even more.  
Two months later, The Matron had offered Isak to accompany her into town, on one of her shopping trips to the town’s market square. The sounds and sights however, had been too much for him and he had gone straight to bed as soon as they got back to the house, queasy from the smell of soot and old piss. How anyone could stand living in a place like that, Isak would never understand.

The Home of the Lost Boys were located a few miles outside of town, hidden away in a dense forest area, near the foot of a mountain, The Matron would often refer to it as her “little thieves’ den” or as “a gem, hidden away from the real world”.

Before, Isak had found the home in the forest confining, the sense of feeling closed off from the rest of the world made him anxious. However, after having experienced the town, with its loud steam trains, stench of urine and myriad of people, Isak begun to embrace the comfort of the quiet forest home.  
  


⋆ ⋆ ⋆  
  
  


Isak spends the rest of the day outside playing in the snow with three of the younger kids, building snow forts and snowmen. He is in the middle of building an igloo with two of the boys, the third boy making snow angels next to them, when Mahdi and Jonas join him. They sit in comfortable silence for a while, each working on a different section of the igloo wall, Isak quietly enjoying the relaxing atmosphere.

So of course, Magnus ruins it.

“SNOW FIGHT!” he yells from the other end of the garden as he and the three kids in his company, having just emerged from the forest carrying firewood, drop the wood on the ground and storm towards Isak’s group and their unfinished igloo.

Isak scrambles for cover behind one of the snow forts, quickly scooping snow together in a pile. He barely manages to form a single snowball, before Magnus is on him, shoving snow into his face. Spluttering, Isak reaches up and smashes his own snowball into the side of Magnus’ head, making him tumble off Isak with a very manly shriek. “Not in the ear, Isak!” he whines miserably. Isak shrugs non-apologetically as he wipes the snow from his own face, instead focusing his attention on a preoccupied Jonas a few meters from them, busy building his own little mountain of snow ammunition.

Isak and Magnus smirk at each other as they sneak in on their next unsuspecting victim.  
  
  


⋆ ⋆ ⋆  
  
  


Dinner is a quiet affair, everyone spent from playing in the snow all day. Some of the younger boys sniffle, a sign of having not dressed properly for the cold winter weather, which makes The Matron fusses over them instantly, bringing blankets and warm beverages as she escorts them over to the warm hearth.

Isak and his three friends sneak off to the kitchen to clean the dirty dishes while The Matron is occupied and they do manage to work seriously for approximately five minutes, until Magnus turns towards the other boys, wearing a beard made out of the dish soap and soon it turns into a competition between the four boys, about who can make the most magnificent beard. Mahdi, wearing the most glorious white soap-beard Isak has ever seen, straightens his back and with both hands in his sides, he imitates the persona of one of the rich noblemen in town, looking the epitome of importance and arrogance. Isak suppose he does it quite well, by the way Jonas and Magnus fold over in fits of laughter, soon joining in on the imitation.

Isak, having no clue what a rich nobleman supposedly sounds like, opts to make up for his inadequacy by smearing the beards of the other boys’ faces and ruining their little impersonation game.

He is that mature.

Afterwards they all go to Isak and Jonas’ room. Magnus and Mahdi immediately throw themselves down on Jonas’ bed, searching frantically under pillows and mattress.

Jonas sits down and smacks both boys upside their heads with one of the pillows. “I don’t hide the weed in my bed, you idiots. Besides, I only had one joint left and you- ” he points an accusing finger at Magnus “-ruined that one, thank you for that by the way.”  
Both boys moan miserably and settle down on the bed, Magnus now looking somewhat guilty.

Isak sits down on his own bed, watching the other boys interact, Jonas wearing the same displeased expression he wore when holding the ruined joint earlier.

When he had gotten here almost a year ago, Jonas had been rooming with another boy. His name was Kenneth and he had been one of The Matron’s favourites, the best thief amongst the bunch, only eleven years old. One day he had gone with her to town, to accompany her on one of her ‘important business meetings’ she used to attend. Both dressed up, they had left an early Saturday evening. The Matron had returned alone the next day in the worst mood Isak had ever seen her in. Her eyes had been red and her voice harsh, when she had commanded Isak and Jonas to burn Kenneth’s belonging and to remove the extra bed down into the basement, and then she had proceeded to lock herself in her room for three days straight. When she came out, she had acted like everything was fine, and none of the boys had dared to ask about what had happened. And they never mentioned Kenneth again.

 

Looking at the other boys now, he wonders if they know what exactly had transpired that Saturday. The three of them having been raised and groomed by The Matron, would of course be closer to her and maybe she would have told them the truth in confidentiality.  
Isak watches them in silence for a while, but being in his room, his thoughts are soon drawn towards his desk. Moving away from the bed and to the desk, he sits down in the chair and opening the drawer, Isak picks up the wooden device.

It is still beautiful to look at, the carvings so small and detailed and the creatures depicted so uniquely strange, he wonders at the person behind this creation. More so, Isak wonders how he ever came to possess such a piece of art and if he will ever remember.  
But it has been a year and no memories have yet surfaced, only strange dreams about an imaginary land that haunt the empty insides of his skull.

Fascinating as the dreams can be, Isak longs for anything tangible that can reveal his past, whether it be a person, a place, or a smell, he’d accept anything instead of the gnawing hollow darkness in his mind.

 

Isak lifts the wooden device to his face, so lost in thought he almost misses the soft humming coming from it and he nearly drops it in shocked surprise. Gripping the device with both hands, Isak watches it intently, breath stilling. He is almost certain he feels a soft humming in the tips of his fingers, or maybe it is just his hands that are shaking. He closes his eyes and forces himself to relax.

The sudden blow of a pillow to his head jolts Isak out of his concentration and this time he actually drops the device and it clatters loudly onto the desk. He quickly picks it back up, but it has yet again grown quiet, the soft humming gone, and Isak can almost convince himself that it was all in his imagination.  
Shooting a glare towards the three boys on Jonas’ bed, he picks up the pillow and hauls it back at their heads. Mahdi catches it easily and proceeds to beat Magnus with it, in lieu of having nothing better to do.

“Why don’t you leave that thing alone and join us instead, your three best friends, who actually want to spend time with you-” Jonas pulls his yellow beanie further down his head, covering his curls, as he looks at Isak intently “-and not just watch you lose your mind over some stupid wooden art piece.”  
“It is not stupid,” Isak mutters, but he puts down the device on his desk and, grabbing his own pillow from his bed, he assists Mahdi in whacking a yelling Magnus, finally able to get him back from ruining their joint.  
Jonas, having been left out of the scuffle, now sits with his back against the wall and with his guitar resting on his legs, strumming and singing softly under his breath.  
This gets the other boys’ attention, and they stop their pillow fight and instead starts singing along to Jonas’ playing, rowdy and off key but the cheer in their voices make up for it and soon the room is filled with laughter and song.

 

⋆ ⋆ ⋆  
  
  


Isak startles awake to a strange sound. It is dark outside, but the inside of his room is currently bathed in a green pale glow and somewhere to his left he hears a strange creaking sound. Isak blinks slowly and looks in the direction of the sound, still sluggish and confused from the sudden wakening, but the sight that meets him, jolts him into complete wakefulness.

Jonas is sitting on the floor, legs crossed and shoulders hunched, leaning over something in his hands. Something that’s whirring and creaking, and shining and Isak must definitely be dreaming, because that is his device, in the hands of his best friend, as alive as it has ever only been in his dreams. But Isak’s dreams have never been like this. He pinches himself for good measure. Ouch. Not a dream then.

He gets out of bed and cautiously approaches Jonas, the other boy barely seeming to notice, both eyes glued to the device in his hands. Tentatively, Isak puts a hand on his friend’s shoulder, trying to get his attention. “Jonas how-“ he whispers softly-  
“It is so mesmerizing.” Jonas interrupts, wonder in his voice, gaze locked on the device, unblinking. “Look at the carvings, Isak. They’re moving!”  
Isak nods, moving his gaze away from Jonas and down to the wooden device. They sit like that for a while, none of the boys saying anything more, only watching the device in Jonas’ hands as it moves in complex patterns, fluidly like running water.  
Yearning to touch the device himself, Isak gently pries the device away from Jonas, snapping the other boy out of his trancelike state and he blinks up at Isak in confusion.

The instant Isak holds the device in his hands, a series of images starts flashing rapidly through his mind.  
A huge snow-tipped mountain. A green dense forest. Mermaids lounging in a pool of water, their pearly laughter ringing in his ears as his mind conjures image after image. He can make no sense of it all.  
And then he sees him, and it is like nothing else matters.  
  
  


⋆ ⋆ ⋆

 

Even stands in front of Isak, as solid and tangible as his best friend next to him. His blue eyes locked with Isak’s, he smiles softly, his face radiating warmth, as he reaches his hand out toward the smaller boy.  
Isak reaches back out to him instinctively, but as his hand grasps nothing but thin air the image dissipates like mist in the morning sun.

Blinking in bewilderment, Isak looks down at the device in his right hand. The apparatus has yet again gone still and silent, the green glow that bathed the room in light now gone, blanketing the room in darkness.

Isak hears Jonas get up and a few seconds later, a soft golden light from his friends’ bedside lamp illuminates the room. Jonas sits down next to Isak again with a pensive look in his eyes as he stares at the wooden device, both silent. They both wait with baited breath, but when some time pass and nothing happens, Isak gently puts the device down on the floor, a strange ache in his chest.  
Thumping a clenched fist against his chest to ease the unfamiliar feeling, Isak opens his mouth to say something, but a sudden tapping at their window disrupts his train of thought.  
Isak squints at the window and sees a strange bird pecking at the glass. As he gets up and moves closer to the window, he can see it is not a bird at all, but a small humanlike creature, wings glowing a soft yellow as it hovers in front of the window glass. It continues its insistent tapping, desperate to get inside.

“Don’t open,” Jonas whispers next to Isak, watching the fairy warily.

 

Isak hesitates a moment, sharing a glance with Jonas, before he slowly lifts his hand to the window handle and opens the window cautiously. The small creature rushes in. It flutters in the air for a second before it turns towards Isak, and without warning it flashes towards his face and frantically it starts tugging at his hair. When Isak lifts his hand to bat it away, it grabs his index finger and attempts to pull him towards the windows, its urgency making it clear that he is meant to follow it as it zips out into the dark.

Isak stares after it for a short moment, not quite believing his own eyes. Pulling himself out of his stupor he runs to his closet and quickly throws on a hoodie. As he grabs his shoes and moves toward the window, fully intent on following the strange creature, Jonas grabs his arm and yanks him back into reality.

“You’re not going after that, that thing in the middle of the night!” His brows furrow when Isak yanks his arm free.

“I have to!” Isak protests, harsher than he intends, and he looks away from Jonas and out at the winged creature, zipping impatiently through the snowflakes. He has seen the creature before, in his dreams. It used to be in the company of Even and if he somehow is out there too, Isak has to find him. When he looks back at the other boy, Jonas is watching him with an unreadable expression. He looks back out at the creature.

“No,” he says finally, sparing a glance at Isak as he grabs his jacket.

“Not without me.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot of world-building in this chapter, but I promise more action in the next chapter, as we will finally get to meet Even. \o/
> 
> I'll try to update weekly, if life will let me.

**Author's Note:**

> Please leave a kudos and a comment if you like it so far, I'll greatly appreciate it. <3 Feel free to hmu on my [ tumblr ](http://isakxeven.tumblr.com) as well.


End file.
